Cosmetic and Restorative Dentistry in Fort Lauderdale — What You Need to Know!

“A smile is a terrible thing to waste… Let’s restore yours to the best it can be!” ~ Dr. Max

The field of dentistry is ever progressing so that we are able to give our patients several options in restoring their mouths. For some, we can easily repair small cavities with minimally invasive composite or white fillings. For others, if a filling is larger, but not big enough to crown, we may graduate to an inlay or onlay. The difference between the two? Size.

When a cavity is small, and I feel we can conserve tooth structure, a bonded white filling will be more than adequate.

White composite filling.

As a cavity becomes larger, and more enamel needs to be sacrificed, we would then need to fabricate a “glorified filling” that is made out of porcelain (or gold), and that my friends is called an inlay/onlay. Either with a filling or inlay/onlay, when bonded in place, we can mimic tooth structure with a beautiful restoration that look like a tooth and feels even smoother.

If an overabundance of tooth structure needs to be sacrificed, then a full coverage crown or “cap” needs to be performed. By crowning a tooth with lifelike porcelain, we can seal a cracked or compromised tooth so that it does not break down any further. Saving teeth is always key. We never want to lose our teeth or just pull it out, because if we do, we are effectively losing our efficiency to chew the foods we like to eat. You can even break other teeth when you start to take teeth out instead of restoring them.

Full coverage porcelain crown.

The difference between a veneer and crown is thickness. Veneers are considerably thinner and are made to laminate the front portions of your teeth. We can create fuller, more youthful smiles with something as simple as a thin piece of porcelain bonded over a minimally prepared tooth. Your friends will notice something is different, but when we change smiles, at times, they don’t know what….just something’s different. I notice when we do smile makeovers, I see a new confidence in our patients. They feel better about themselves. For one patient in particular, I remember her coming in for her cleaning appointment and telling me she started dating again when she gained that confidence through her smile.

Veneers

And finally there are implants. Yes, if we can not save a tooth. Or if all other options have been considered, but we have decided the best is to remove and replace- implants are the best way to go.

We can give you back something almost as good as what God gave you in a root form screw with a beautiful crown on top of it. We are at a dawn of an age where cosmetics do not have to be sacrificed when you lose a tooth as an implant is there to replace it. If anything, I would say it is the new standard of care in place of dentures/partials. Removable partials and dentures are on the way of being a thing of the past. Putting a device in a glass at night, and then sticking it back into your mouth in the morning is no where near as efficient as an implant that can become part of you.

Recreating nature is not something for the future, but for the now. Call me today at (954) 491-3544 and say you want to talk to Dr. Max. A smile is a terrible thing to waste. Let’s restore yours to the best it can be.